Page 12 of Unforgivable

"She's winning," Inuit says grumpily. I wasn't too eager to play poker with a pup his age, but he and Ezra reassured me that he already plays. Ezra and Rhet like to play and sometimes they go to games at other packmate's homes.

"She's good at the game," Ezra says from the cot. "Do you think we can swing a new barn if we build it on the existing foundation by the pond?"

"We need a shearing shed and a shed for the animals themselves," Rhet explains to me.

I grin at him, "still, sheep are nice, and lambs are really adorable!" I chime.

Both Rhet and Inuit groan. "All we need are more animals. I want that money for a new bull."

"Why, I thought Rocky was a good bull?" I ask worriedly. I saw the ornery creature from a distance the other day. Thjis called him a jackass, but I saw the fondness in his eyes for the animal.

"He is," Rhet smiles at me and sits on the bed next to where Inuit is perched. "But we could use some fresh blood bred into our stock. There's a farm in Texas that breeds the best bulls. I've had my eye on one for a couple of years now."

"Can you buy both? How much is a bull?" I ask.

"These go for about $5000-$6000," Rhet says.

I nod, "wow."

He smiles. "Rocky has about bred all he can. We need to change it up."

I frown, "you... what happens to Rocky?"

They all fall silent. I gasp, "you're not going to make Rocky burgers, are you?!"

"No! No, not at all," all three males protest, but I can hear the lie.

I rub my suddenly queasy stomach. "But he's a daddy."

Rhet bursts into laughter. I smile at him weakly. I know I'm being ridiculous. This is a ranch, after all. They breed for food.

"Actually, we're looking to switch into bison-bred stock, but they are more expensive to start with. Hybrids are cheaper in the long run and more hardy for the winter months," Rhet eagerly starts explaining his ideas, getting more excited as I contribute with questions. I never thought I would be interested in this sort of thing, but the pack can't hunt very far with human towns nearby, and this ranch sustains our population. Plus, it's a safe topic and takes my mind off of... everything.

"So," I finish with, "can't Ezra get a couple of sheep at first and see how it goes?"

All three males laugh, even Inuit.

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Ezra

I pull out my album, aka, convince the pretty, sweet female in the guest bedroom to convince Rhet to buy some fuzzy lambs in the spring.

With a grin, I bound into the room, ignoring Thjis's warning growl as he turns over on the cot.

"What the fuck, dude?" he mumbles, shoving his head under his pillow.

"Morning, gorgeous female!" I crow, presenting the book to an amused-looking Lyri with a flourish. "Ta-da! You're welcome."

She giggles when she sees the cover, a cartoon lamb with googly eyes. Opening the book, she coos at the pictures.

Smirking, I walk over and kick Thjis. "I brought Lyri a present. Want to see it?" I cackle internally. Thjis hates sheep. He loves the horses and doesn't mind the cows, but animals who scream 'prey' piss him off.

"Fucker!" he shouts, leaping up as I laugh, backing up with my hands held high. Scowling, he rubs his hand over his face, stomps over to Lyri, glares down at the book in her hands, and stalks out of the room, growling, "fucking sheep!" as he leaves.

"Well, now that he's gone," I tell her, waggling my eyebrows.

She looks at me, still laughing softly. She's a beautiful female when her eyes light up. It's a subtle beauty. She has stronger features than what may seem ideal for a female, and she has more muscle than most, but her eyes and smile are perfect.

"You're mean to him," she scolds me gently.

I scoff, "he just can't handle competition for a pretty female."

Her smile falters, and I want to kick myself. I hate seeing the shadows come back into her eyes.

Sitting next to her, I start entertaining her with stories of sheep and my plans to obtain a few. Mostly, it consists of having Rhet's younger cousin smuggle some in if he ever comes to visit.

When Thjis comes back in, freshly showered, he smirks at me as he lifts Lyri into his arms to carry her into the kitchen. Jackass.

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